Aaron Gray as the Celtics backup Center.

[Marcus13]

Yeah, we'll take him.  I mean, theres not a lot of legit 7 footers out there

[Fafnir]

Solid third string C, so we could certainly use him.

[oldmanspeaks]

I have been touting Gray for quite a while. I watched him play at Pitt and he is vastly underrated. His big negatives are that he is not a leaper and isn't super quick. However he has surprising good body control and has good hads around the basket. He can also hit the 12 foot open jumper on a regular basis and is always willing to take physical punishment (and since he is very large, he gives out a lot of physical punishment. He has also been a team player. (when at Pitt, I would go nuts when he had his man pinned and they didn't get him the ball. However he never whined about not getting the ball even though he had a very good shooting percentage). I think he is much better than the normal #3 center as he can score better and can function in an offense with and without the ball. He won't make anyone forget Bill Russell on defense but he is a biiiiig body.

[wiley]

yeah, he looked great against the Lakers before the injury....and Chris Paul singled him out for his high level play....

[PortCelt]

He opted out, so the LLE may suffice. Would make a solid, durable backup.

[Lucky17]

He opted out, so the LLE may suffice. Would make a solid, durable backup.

He left $1 million on the table to opt out. I think he commands at least double that, perhaps as much as $3 mil.

I am having a hard time reconciling Ainge's professed desire to maintain 2012 cap space at all costs, and the need to fill out the rest of the roster with decent players. Something's got to give. I fear it may be the latter.

[mctyson]

Admittedly I have not seen a lot of either Gray or Kwame.  What I know about Gray I remember from his days at Pitt.  I always thought he'd be a servicable backup C for a contending team - coming from Pitt you know a) they win, and b) they play hard.

Kwame will always be remembered as a bust, but hey, we took a shot on Kandi-man didn't we?  

My guess is that whoever is a better fit defensively would have the upper hand.

[slam]

I'd love Gray on the Celtics, but for one year only.  I don't want to sacrifice cap space for as long as there's a chance of getting Dwight Howard.

[PortCelt]

He opted out, so the LLE may suffice. Would make a solid, durable backup.

He left $1 million on the table to opt out. I think he commands at least double that, perhaps as much as $3 mil.

I am having a hard time reconciling Ainge's professed desire to maintain 2012 cap space at all costs, and the need to fill out the rest of the roster with decent players. Something's got to give. I fear it may be the latter.

But the LLE may be terminated by the new CBA starting in 2012-13. Even so it's a player option in year two, so he could opt out again and use Boston as a springboard. But if you're going to spend $3m+ why not reach out Mohammed first?

[Yoki_IsTheName]

He opted out, so the LLE may suffice. Would make a solid, durable backup.

He left $1 million on the table to opt out. I think he commands at least double that, perhaps as much as $3 mil.

I am having a hard time reconciling Ainge's professed desire to maintain 2012 cap space at all costs, and the need to fill out the rest of the roster with decent players. Something's got to give. I fear it may be the latter.

He'll probably command at least around 2-4 even at a longshot 5 mil. Even if it's a multi year i think it's not gonna hurt the 2012 cap at all since it's still relatively cheap. Plus he's relatively still young at 28, he can be Dwight's backup. I hope Danny sees this. He's a legit big. He may be a little slow, but he's big enough to clog lanes and he's active in the glass and  physical. He can make shots underneath the basket too. With Rajon distributing, he can be a great addition.

[erisred]

Realistic targets include Brown, Gray, Collins, and Thomas. Less realistic is Dalembert. Least realistic is Chandler.  The Celtics need 2 of them.

[PosImpos]

my expectations are pretty low, so I'll take anyone who's 7 feet and willing to rebound a little

agreed.

[jay]

Realistic targets include Brown, Gray, Collins, and Thomas. Less realistic is Dalembert. Least realistic is Chandler.  The Celtics need 2 of them.

I agree we need two centers.


MLE: Dalembert or DeAndre Jordan

LLE: Aaron Gray or Hilton Armstrong

[letsgoblue86]

Realistic targets include Brown, Gray, Collins, and Thomas. Less realistic is Dalembert. Least realistic is Chandler.  The Celtics need 2 of them.

I agree we need two centers.


MLE: Dalembert or DeAndre Jordan

LLE: Aaron Gray or Hilton Armstrong

No, no, no, no on Hilton Armstrong.

[blake]

Realistic targets include Brown, Gray, Collins, and Thomas. Less realistic is Dalembert. Least realistic is Chandler.  The Celtics need 2 of them.

I agree we need two centers.


MLE: Dalembert or DeAndre Jordan

LLE: Aaron Gray or Hilton Armstrong

NO way Jordan goes anywhere for the MLE.  He is going to get a big payday.